The 10th of October
by Alucard Van Hellsing
Summary: The story of what happened the night of the Kyuubi's attack on Konoha. The story of Namikaze Minato's final battle. The story of how Naruto became a Jinchuuriki. Oneshot.


**DISCLAIMER: Na****ruto and all related trademarks are property of Masashi Kishimoto. Please note that this is only a fanfic, in which I tried to piece the events together to form a coherent story. I am aware that I may be 100 wrong.**

_Forest of Death_

The moon was full, framed against a sky as black as a bottomless pit. It shone upon the rooftops of Konoha, and upon a great clearing deep in the Forest of Death. The ground was covered by a great summoning circle, the strings of seals written in dark, clotting blood. At the centre of the circle was a heap of corpses, human and animal, their lifeless eyes staring at the raven-haired man who was approaching the heap.

Uchiha Madara carefully bit his thumb and allowed a few drops of blood to fall onto the central seal. He then walked back to the edge of the circle and, to be on the safe side, activated his Mangekyo Sharingan, in case the beast needed persuading. His eyes turned a glaring red and the pupils mutated into three-spiked wheel shapes. He then closed his eyes and called on the chakra.

The ears of his mind heard the faint slither of energy through his chakra ducts. He directed the chakra, gathering it all in the palms of his hands, and started to perform the hand seals.

"Ino, Inu, Tori, Saru, Hitsuji, Ino, Tori, Saru, Hitsuji…" The seal formation seemed to last for hours as he generated the vast amount of chakra. Suddenly, he stooped, and slamming his palms on the rim of the summoning circle, cried "Kuchiyose no Jutsu!"

As he said it, a huge cloud of smoke choked the clearing. There was an almighty crash as trees were snapped and uprooted by the humongous beast's arrival. A guttural roar sounded in the night sky, loud enough to awake the dead and chill mortals to the marrow, but the founder of Clan Uchiha was quite unmoved.

With a swish of nine tails that had the power to destroy a mountain, the cloud parted. Looming over the Forest of Death and seething with anger at being called forth in such a disgraceful way as the Summoning Technique, was the Kyuubi no Kitsune, the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox.

With a growl that shook the earth the demon snapped its jaws barely an inch from Madara's face.

"UCHIHA MADARA, YOU DARE TO SUMMON ME?!"

"As long as the blood contract between myself and the foxes remains intact I may summon you as I wish," Madara replied coldly.

"YOU ARE SUPPOSED TO BE DEAD!"

"By that, I assume you mean that you were sure you killed me when you turned against me at the Valley of the End, when I summoned you to battle the First Hokage?"

"YOUR POINTLESS ATTEMPT AT A REBELLION AGAINST KONOHA RESULTED IN THE DEATH OF MY FOX KINDRED. YOU SENT THEM TO BE SLAUGHTERED FOR YOUR OWN ENDS!" snarled the demon fox. "I AM THE KYUUBI, MY WRATH IS NOT PROVOKED WITHOUT CONSEQUENCES! I'LL PUNISH YOUR AUDACITY BY ENDING YOUR MISERBALE LIFE RIGHT NOW….AS PAINFULLY AS I CAN MANAGE!"

"You can try," Madara said, his voice devoid of emotion, "If you want to be subjected to the Mangekyo Sharingan. I can make you relive the slaughter of your kindred, time and time again, in your mind until you are driven insane. Would you enjoy that?"

The Kyuubi's eyes were burning with hatred. "EYES WITH SUCH POWER AND CHAKRA MORE SINISTER THAN MY OWN…CURSE YOU AND YOUR CLAN, MADARA! FINE. I WILL DO WHAT YOU ASK OF ME, FOR NOW. BUT BE WARNED. IF THOSE EYES OF YOURS EVER FAIL, I WILL BE FEASTING ON YOUR GUTS BEFORE YOU EVEN KNOW IT!" The demon's voice creaked with menace and murderous intent.

"I'll try and keep it in mind," Madara replied in a bored voice. "Now, your task is simple. We are just outside Konoha; you are to slaughter every last one of its population, men, women, children, ninjas, craftsmen, the lot of them. Raze the godsdamn place to the ground!" By now Madara's voice has become unrecognisable; it was a harsh, bloodthirsty snarl, much like the Kyuubi's.

The beast's snout spilt into a wide grin, displaying a brilliant set of smooth, sharp fangs. "AN ORDER I RELISH, AT LAST! I'LL DO IT!" And with this final roar it sprang into the sky and lunged towards the sleeping village.

Madara's face broke into an evil grin. "This time, shinobi of Konoha, it's the end of the line."

_Konoha_

Meanwhile in Konoha, in the top room of the Hokage tower, a young man with a brilliant shock of blond hair was kneeling next to a bed, holding the hand of its occupant, a beautiful woman in with long, red hair. Medical ninja were rushing in and out of the room to bring towels and hot water, occasionally assisting the woman's labour with medical jutsu.

The young man was wearing a long, flowing white robe with stylized fire patterns on the hems. On the back of the robe was inscribed in kanji the phrase _Yondaime_.

A masked ANBU ninja rushed into the room.

"Hokage-sama!" he panted. "The village is under attack - from a Bijuu!"

"WHAT?!" Namikaze Minato, the Fourth Hokage, yelled as he jumped to his feet. "A Bijuu?! That's all we needed! We've barely recovered from the Great Shinobi War, my wife is giving birth, and we're being attacked by a Bijuu?" He ran his hands over his face in an attempt to pull himself together. "Have you identified it?"

The ANBU shinobi gulped. "Yes, Hokage-sama. It's the….Kyuubi."

Minato turned as pale as a corpse. "The Kyuubi? Oh gods…"

He turned to his wife, who was sweating with the effort of her labour. "Kushina, are you gonna be all right?"

She smiled weakly. "I'll be fine, Minato. You go and…. do what you must."

Minato nodded and left the room, followed by the ANBU.

_Gates of Konoha_

Minato arrived atop the Gates of Konoha within a minute. He looked around at the two men standing next to him. He nodded to the one on his left. "Jiraiya-sensei", he said in acknowledgement. He then bowed to the man on his right. "Sarutobi-sama."

The former Third Hokage's gaze remained upon the battle that was taking place before them. "Glad you could make it, Minato. Is Kushina all right?"

"It'll be a while before the labour is over," Minato said. "But she's dong fine."

The man on the left chuckled. "Mighty fine woman, that Kushina. Even having a child won't get her down. Not to mention she's got cleavage worthy of the gods – OW!"

"Please don't make perverted comments about my wife at a time like this, sensei," Minato said respectfully, withdrawing the fist that he had punched Jiraiya with.

The Frog Hermit rubbed his jaw angrily. "You really ought to show more respect to your sensei, _gaki_!" He turned his gaze back to the battle.

It was a horrifying sight. The great fox demon pranced and shook its nine tails, causing the earth beneath its feet to quake. Irritated by the humans that were attacking its feet and head, it roared.

"PATHETIC HUMANS! YOU THINK YOU CAN DEFEAT THE GREAT KYUUBI?!"

Ninjutsu of the fire, water, earth, wind and thunder elemental styles were cast by Konoha's Jonin and ANBU against the monster, only to be deflected by the Kyuubi's monstrous aura. Hundreds of animal summons lunged at the demon and were crushed by a swish of its mighty tails, or where devoured by its humongous maw. The demon laughed cruelly and advanced towards the village.

"We can't seen to do anything to stop it," Sarutobi said, his voice uncharacteristically broken by despair. "I'm afraid Konoha is doomed."

"Honestly, I'm amazed you ever became Hokage in the first place if you give up so easily," Minato said, stepping forward.

"What do you think you're doing, boy?!" Jiraiya yelled. "You're going up against the strongest of the Bijuu single-handed? It's suicide!"

"I'm the Fourth Hokage," Minato said placidly. "I swore to protect this village if it cost me my life. Whether the enemy be human or Bijuu makes no difference. It's my duty to my village..and my family."

Jiraiya looked outraged for a moment, then his face split into a grin. "You said it, boy. Your kid'll be proud of you, if you come out alive."

"The Will of Fire be with you, Minato," Sarutobi said. His voice had regained his fervour. Minato smiled at him and jumped of the Gates into the forest.

"There he goes, Sarutobi-sensei," Jiraiya said fondly. "The finest ninja Konoha ever produced. Minato Namikaze – The Yellow Flash – The Fourth Hokage."

Minato's voice sounded from the woods. "Kuchiyose no Jutsu!"

Jiraiya's face turned slightly paler. "Oh no, I'll never hear the end of it if he's summoned _him_."

The cloud of smoke that accompanied every summoning parted to reveal a great robed frog. It was almost the size of the Kyuubi, and had a yakuza shortsword that matched its size strapped to its waist.

It was not happy to be summoned.

"Minato-teme!" it yelled at the figure standing on its head. "I was taking a nap! I'm gonna give you such a kicking, you asshole!"

"Please calm down, Gamabunta-oyabi, this is an emergency," Minato said desperately, in an appeal to the Frog Boss' good nature.

The giant frog's eyes swivelled and came to rest on the Kyuubi, whereupon they nearly popped out of their sockets. "The KYUUBI?!" Gamabunta yelled. "You want me to fight the Kyuubi? Have you gone ape-shit mad, kid?!"

"You're saying you can't fight it?" Minato said dubiously.

"I'm saying it's godsdamn suicide!"

"Oh well, I guess you're right. Sorry I bothered you." Minato sighed theatrically. "I mean, you were able to fight equally with Manda when Jiraiya-sensei summoned you during his fight with Orochimaru when he left the village…."

"I would have made a wallet out of the snake bastard's hide if he hadn't bolted before I could stick him!"

"…but Manda was only the strongest summon of the snake discipline. A Bijuu's gotta be about a hundred times more difficult, and this is the Kyuubi, no less."

"Wait a minute, gaki!"

"It was a stupid idea to begin with, thinking you could fight the Kyuubi. Sorry for wasting your time, you can leave. I'll find another way."

Gamabunta groaned in frustration, "I'm gonna do it, aren't I? You're gonna trick me or blackmail me but in the end I'm gonna do it, aren't I?"

"Are you?" Minato said innocently.

"Fine! I'll help you out with this fight. But when we're done I'm gonna kick your ass, you little shit!"

Minato grinned. "That's fine, oyabi. Now let's get him."

All this time the Kyuubi had been watching the great amphibian and its rider with vague interest. A swift ANBU managed to land on its snout while it was distracted and prepared to stab it between the eyes with his katana, only to be flung into the air screaming by a flick of the beast's head. His cries were silenced as the monstrous jaws snapped shut over him.

Minato offered up a quick prayer to the gods for the soul of the brave shinobi, then began to gather his chakra. "Oyabi, get me as close as possible to him."

Gamabunta grunted his assent and launched himself into the air.

"Suiton : Teppoudama!" he cried, hurling a bullet of concentrated water at the Bijuu. The beast jumped to avoid the attack and Gamabunta twisted in midair, brushing off the fox's flank.

"That close enough for ya?"

"I'm not ready yet, oyabi!" Minato cried, desperately adjusting the blue swivelling chakra on the palm of his hand, which was slowly condensing into the form of a sphere.

Gamabunta grunted in annoyance. "What a bother…Fine, here we go again!"

Minato brandished the chakra sphere triumphantly. "OK! I'm ready!"

Gamabunta repeated his attack, bringing himself face to the face with the demon fox. Minato found himself staring right into its burning red eyes that seemed like bottomless wells of malice and hatred. Tearing his gaze away from this fearsome sight, Minato launched himself from Gamabunta's back onto the Kyuubi's head, the arm holding the chakra sphere thrust forward.

"Rasengan!"

The sphere collided with the point between the Kyuubi's eyes in a terrible explosion of chakra. Minato was hurled backwards with unnatural force, but he was able to land on Gamabunta's back, albeit rather unorthodoxly, on both his feet.

Minato's eyes widened in horror as the explosion cleared and the visage of the Kyuubi was revcaled. It was quite uninjured, and seemed to be enjoying itself if anything.

"AAAH, THAT WAS AN EXCELLENT MASSAGE!" it taunted. "HOPELESS! A MERE HUMAN CAN'T DEFEAT ME!"

"Dammit all!" Gamabunta exclaimed. "You got any other ideas, kid?"

Minato's shoulder's dropped.

_I've failed them all. The village. Kushina. My child… There's nothing I can do to save them._

_Unless…_

With an air of terrible resignation, Minato began to form a hand seal.

"What are you doing, kid?"

"This is goodbye, Gamabunta-oyabi."

"WHAT?!"

There was a blinding flash of light and a chilling, otherworldy shriek. But they were only seen and heard by Minato and the Kyuubi, for it was for them that the God of Death had come. And it was this very ghastly figure that appeared behind Minato, accompanied by the moans tortured souls it had consumed.

"WHAT IS THIS?" The Kyuubi's voice contained a faint suggestion of fear.

"This is it for you, demon!" Minato cried. "Shiki Fuujin!"

The God of Death laughed cruelly and reached out with a ghostly arm. The Kyuubi felt excruciating pain all over its body as its soul was wrenched out.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO……."

In an explosion of white light the God of Death and the Kyuubi vanished.

Minato collapsed on Gamabunta's back, panting, half-dead. His face looked like it could have belonged to a corpse, his hair hung lank, and his robe was torn. Yet he pushed himself up onto his feet.

"You did it, boy! You beat the Kyuubi!" Gamabunta sounded uncharacteristically joyful.

"Thank you….oyabi…I couldn't have done it without you…" Minato said.

In a puff of smoke, Gamabunta was gone, and Minato lay on the ground.

A group of shinobi rushed to his side.

"YOU DID IT, BOY!" Jiraiya yelled. "You saved the village! You're a damn hero!"

Sarutobi's wrinkled face was split into a wide grin. "Well done," he said.

"How is…Kushina?" Minato croaked.

Sarutobi's face sobered."I'm afraid she died during the birth, Minato. I'm sorry."

Minato closed his eyes. _I'll be with her soon._

"The child?" he asked.

"It's a boy," Jiraiya said, handing Minato a small bundle of blankets. Inside was a sleeping baby with blonde hair. "He looks just like you," Jiraiya grinned.

Minato searched around for a suitable name. "Naruto," he said at last. "Uzumaki Naruto."

Sarutobi's brow creased. "Namikaze Naruto, you mean. A child always takes the name of his father."

"Not this time," Minato said. "I want him to have Kushina's name. My name will only be a source of shame for him now. Sarutobi-sama, I used…that."

The former Third Hokage's eyes widened in horror.

Minato averted his gaze and turned to his sleeping son. He pulled the blankets back to reveal the baby's stomach, and gently placed a hand on it. A seal formed instantly around the navel, and the baby started to cry as whisker marks appeared on its face.

"Forgive me…Naruto…May the gods punish me for what I have just done."

He turned back to Sarutobi. "I'll have to ask you to take up the position of Hokage again. I'm sorry. And please…tell the people of the village not to look at Naruto as the demon inside him, but as the hero that became a sacrifice to protect them from it. He's the hero today…not me…" His voice slowly faded and he fell back, his newborn sun still held in his arms.

Jiraiya leaned forward and closed Minato's eyes with a shaking hand. "Rest in peace, Minato," he said. "In the end, we all you and your son our lives." He carefully took the baby from the arms of his father. "What are we going to do?" he asked the man who was, once again, the Third Hokage.

_The Kyuubi awoke in darkness, confined in a small prison by the great iron bars of a seal. Its rage at finding itself trapped in such a ridiculous way, at being imprisoned inside a human body, was terrible. Its spirit roared and thrashed but nothing could break the seal. Yet its fury was felt by the infant it was sealed in…_

The newly christened Naruto whimpered in Jiraiya's arms. He opened his eyes momentarily and then shut them tight again, but not before the two men could catch a glimpse of red in the cerulean orbs.

The Thrid Hokage looked grave. "This boy has become a container of great power," he said. "We have to protect him from it until he can control it. I will care for him until he is able to fend for himself."

Jiraiya nodded. _Things are gonna get pretty interesting,_ he said. _After this development, I won't be surprised if he ends up surpassing even Minato…. _

**GLOSSARY**

**Mangekyo Sharingan**: (lit.)Kaleidoscope Copy Wheel Eye

**Ino: **Boar

**Inu: **Dog

**Tori: **Bird

**Saru: **Monkey

**Hitsuji:** Sheep

**Kuchiyose no Jutsu: **Summoning Technique

**Kyuubi: **Nine-tails

**Kitsune: **The Japanese word for fox. Foxes are a common subject of Japanese folklore. Stories depict them as intelligent beings and as possessing magical abilities that increase with their age and wisdom. Foremost among these is the ability to assume human form. While some folktales speak of kitsune employing this ability to trick others — as foxes in folklore often do — others portray them as faithful guardians, friends, lovers, and wives. Foxes and human beings lived in close proximity in ancient Japan; this companionship gave rise to legends about the creatures. Kitsune have become closely associated with Inari, a Shinto _kami_ or spirit, and serve as his messengers. This role has reinforced the fox's supernatural significance. The more tails a kitsune has — they may have as many as nine — the older, wiser, and more powerful it is. Because of their potential power and influence, some people make offerings to them as to a deity.

**Yondaime: **Fourth

**Hokage: **Fire Shadow (but you all knew that, right?)

**-sama:** A suffix used when the person you are adressing is or is considered by you to be of greater status. May express deep respect.

**Bijuu: **Tailed Beast. In the Naruto universe, there are nine Bijuu, the number of tails they have indicating their power. As such, Shukaku the One-tail is the weakest, while Kyuubi the Nine-tails is the strongest. They each have different powers. For example, the Shukaku has complete control over sand, and the Kyuubi has a vast supplu of chakra and regenerative abilities.

ANBU: The ANBU (, _The ANBU_ _literally_ "Dark Side", _Viz manga_ "Black Ops", _English TV_ "ANBU Black Ops") is actually short for **An**satsu Senjutsu Tokushu **Bu**tai (_literally_ Special Assassination and Tactical Squad). The name is a form of contraction, similar to English acronyms like SWAT, where the two kanji used to abbreviate the group's full name constitute an actual word on their own. The ANBU wear porcelain animal masks in order to distinguish themselves from normal shinobi and to conceal their identities. They also have standard uniforms consisting of black and gray armor, arm guards, and a signature spiral tattoo on their left shoulder. Certain ANBU wear black cowls over their standard uniforms, and squad leaders may wear white cowls.ANBU protect the village from exceptional threats, conduct high-risk missions into enemy countries, and deal with extremely strong ninja. They are also responsible for carrying out assassinations and missions requiring specially trained ninja.

**-sensei**Suffix, usually means "teacher" or "master".

**Gaki:**lit. brat. Used as an insult.

**-teme:** The equivalent of bastard/bitch, I think.

**Oyabi:** lit. Boss.

**Suiton****: Teppoudama:** Water Style: Liquid Bullet

**Rasengan:** lit. Spiralling Sphere

**Shiki Fuujin:** Dead Demon Consuming Seal

**Please review! This is my first fanfic and I'd like to know how good you think it is.**


End file.
